In recent years, the Emperors Palace Peermont Community Benefit Trust (PCBT) has become actively involved in supporting the Thembisa Commerce and Entrepreneurship School of Specialisation with a focus on Hospitality and Tourism (Thembisa SOS) – formerly Thembisa High School.

This included establishing a simulated hotel room for teaching purposes (valued at R300 000) at the school in 2022, and a further investment of R500 000 to support the development of learners and teachers in the hospitality and tourism industry.

Since then, the resort and casino have taken their involvement a step further by donating 10 gas stoves and two 48kg gas bottles to the school to enable learners to conduct their practical (cooking) classes and exams, and by adding furniture to a simulated restaurant at the school.

In addition, Grade 11 and Grade 12 learners at Thembisa SOS have participated in the Saturday School Programme since 2024, funded by the Peermont Children’s Trust (PCT), one of Emperors Palace’s corporate social investment (CSI) initiatives.

The programme provides learners with additional academic support to strengthen their academic performance and improve their readiness for tertiary education and future careers.

Last year, through a Mandela Day project, the PCBT also began supporting the Oosrand Commerce and Entrepreneurship School of Specialisation (Oosrand SOS) in Reiger Park, with a focus on hospitality and tourism, by donating furniture for the school’s coffee shop and refurbishing two change rooms at the sports field.

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The PCBT has subsequently taken upliftment at these two schools further by funding a “Train the Trainer” programme for educators at the Swiss Hotel School (SHS).

“Following discussions with the principal of Oosrand School of Specialisation, it became evident that many educators responsible for teaching hospitality and tourism would benefit from industry-specific skills development,” explained PCBT manager Thomas Masango.

“Recognising this need, the PCBT partnered with the Swiss Hotel School (SHS) in Randburg to develop a specialised training programme aimed at strengthening educators’ practical knowledge and teaching capacity.

“By investing in teachers, the initiative seeks to enhance the quality of hospitality and tourism education and, ultimately, improve learning outcomes for learners.”

In consultation with the Gauteng Department of Education, a cohort of educators from Oosrand SOS and Thembisa SOS enrolled in the 16-week programme at the Swiss Hotel School earlier this year.

“We are delighted to report that every participant completed the course and graduated recently, equipping them with enhanced industry knowledge and practical skills that they can now take back into their classrooms for the benefit of future learners,” said Masango.

The SHS Train the Trainer programme is a short course designed to provide professional enrichment to hospitality, tourism and consumer studies teachers.

The goal of the programme was to connect educators with the hospitality industry, providing information and experiences they could take back to their own classes and pass on to their students.

The course covered several theoretical components, such as the current state of the industry in South Africa and globally; key competencies strongly desired by the industry and how to develop them in young people; cost and revenue practices within events management; and how to build your own business within the industry.

The course also had a strong practical element that provided key technical skills to educators in the kitchen, service, and entrepreneurial environments, ensuring that teachers are equipped to plan, demonstrate, and conduct better practical assessments in their schools.

Further to these aspects, there were enrichment modules that looked to provide teachers who may never have worked or had much exposure to the industry with experiences to broaden their understanding.

Wine tasting, sophisticated dessert preparation, and walking tours through the 5-star hotels of Sandton provided additional experience and insight for the teachers who can now use these first-hand experiences to inspire their students.

Speaking on the day of their graduation, Oosrand SOS educator Thembi Ndlanzi said, “Coming to this training has been very beneficial because as hospitality teachers, we need more training all the time for us not to forget and to stay abreast of new trends in the industry.

“With this training, we didn’t only learn that, but we also learnt more about the tourism industry and how the two link together. It has made me more confident as a teacher, and it is like a rejuvenation of knowledge.”

Another educator, Tshepiso Ndaba from Thembisa SOS, commented, “I specialise in hospitality and tourism but I do not have that much experience in hospitality but I learnt a lot now, I know how to set up a table properly, what flowers to use and also learnt how to cook many recipes so it was very helpful and I can take this knowledge back to the classroom.”

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